Vamana Purana — Shukra's Curse on King Danda, Shloka 131

Shukra’s Curse on King Danda and Andhaka’s Challenge to Shiva

Devanagari script

ततो ऋतध्वजः श्रीमान् कपिं वचनमब्रवीत् गच्छनेतुं गुह्यकं त्वमञ्जनाद्रौ महाञ्जनम्

Transliteration

tato ṛtadhvajaḥ śrīmān kapiṃ vacanamabravīt gacchanetuṃ guhyakaṃ tvamañjanādrau mahāñjanam

Translation

Então o ilustre Ṛtadhvaja disse ao macaco estas palavras: “Vai—traze o Guhyaka chamado Mahāñjana do Monte Añjanādri.”

Speakers

• Ṛtadhvaja addressing a kapi (monkey messenger/agent)

Primary Deities

• Kubera (implied via Guhyaka class)

Key Themes

• Messenger motif
• Intermediary beings (Guhyakas/Yakṣas)
• Sacred mountain geography
• Command and quest structure

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "vira", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Who/what are the Guhyakas, and why are they relevant here?

Guhyakas are a class of semi-divine beings commonly associated with Kubera, guardianship, and hidden (guhya) places/treasures. Their appearance signals a shift into a mythic network of attendants and guardians tied to specific locales (here, Añjanādri).

Is Añjanādri a tīrtha or simply a mountain setting?

In Purāṇic geography, named mountains frequently function as sacred nodes even when not explicitly called a tīrtha. Añjanādri is treated as a distinct, locatable sacred mountain, anchoring the episode spatially and enabling later tīrtha-style associations in the broader text tradition.

Why is a ‘monkey’ (kapi) used as the agent?

Purāṇic narratives often employ animal or semi-divine agents as swift messengers. The kapi here functions as a mobile intermediary, paralleling broader Indic epic motifs where monkeys serve as capable envoys and movers between realms/terrains.